Method of manufacturing spoons and similar articles



5m 21, 1932. K G R M 1,864,003

METHOD OF MANUFACTURING SPOONS AND SIMILAR ARTICLES Filed Dec. 26, 1930 raw Patented June 21, 1932 UNITED STATES KURT SPRINGORUM, OF BERLIN-DAHLEM, GERMANY METHOD OF MANUFACTURING SPOONS AND SIMILAR ARTICLES Application filed December 26, 1930, Serial My invention relates to the method of manufacturing spoons and similar articles, and more particularly to the manufacture of such articles from a copper-zinc alloy.

My invention further relates to a suitable alloy for such manufacture.

It is an object of my invention to provide a method in which the articles are made from sheet metal.

To this end, I roll into a sheet a copperzinc alloy, preferably the alloy the composition of which will be given below, obtain blanks from the sheet, preferably by punching, and finish the blanks by hot forging.

Heretofore, spoons and similar articles, such as forks, were made from copper-base alloys in the shape of round bars from which blanks of suitable length were cut and finished into the desired article in only two operations.

This method, while constituting a considerable advance as compared with the old methods in which many operations were required for finishing the article, has the drawback that the articles are somewhat rougher than the articles manufactured by the old methods, and require more polishing.

By using sheet metal and not round bars as the initial product, the advantages of the round-bar method are conserved but articles are obtained which are at least equal to those of the old method.

Using sheet metal as the initial product was impracticable heretofore because alloys which as such were suitable for articles of the kind referred to, could not be rolled into sheets. For instance, a very suitable solution has the following percentage composition: Copper 48, Zinc 35, nickel 10, manganese 3, iron 2, aluminium 2-.

The alloy is fine-grained and particularly resisting to chemical influence so that it will not be attacked by alkaline or acid substances in the food and so is very suitable for spoons and the like.

But it could not be rolled into sheets.

This difficulty is overcome according to my invention by proceeding as follows:

Slabs are cast from a copper-zinc alloy, preferably in divided permanent moulds of No. 504,966, and m GermanyJune 4, 19am iron. The slabs may be of any size, and 1% to 3% in. thick. They are machined and it is recommended to remove the sharp edges. The machined slabs, are. annealed at about TOOdegs. centi 'radefor48 hours, and then hot-rolled at (50 to 825 degs. centigrade. They are rolled down in seven passes in .a single heat, say, from 2 toabout 1/; in., are then reheated and rolled down to about A; in. at 750 to 8525 degs. centigrade. Further reduction is effected by cold-rolling.

Sheets for spons and forks are cold-rolled down to or .1 in.

By way of example, I shall now describe the manufacturing of a spoon with reference to the accompanying drawing in which I Fig. 1 shows a blank,

Figs. 2 and 3 show intermediate stages of its manufacture, and i Fig. 4 shows the finished spoon. V

In carrying out the method for making spoons and similar articles, slabs are first cast from copper-zinc alloy after which the slabs are machined and then annealed for 48 hours at about 7 00 C. The slabs are then heated to a high temperature and subsequently rolled to a given thickness from 750 to 825 C. and further rolling down the hot rolled sheet in the cold. Properly shaped articles are then cut from the slab and the blanks thus obtained are finished by hot forging.

Referring now to the drawing, a is the fiat blank as it is punched from the sheet, Z) shows an intermediate stage in which the handle is partly bent to shape, 0 is another intermediate stage in which the spoon is almost finished but the burr d still adheres to it, and e is the finished spoon, with the burr removed, in pickled and polished condition. A fork.may even be finished in a single stage.

The operations are performed by forging at elevated temperature. Blanks made from sheet metal in accordance with my invention are comparatively smooth and certainly not rougher than articles made by the old method referred to in which 10 to 12 operations are required from the blank to the finished article.

Polishing is the most important operation r in the finishing of articles as described, and r it Wlll be understood that an important 1mprovement is achieved by reducing polishing to a minimum, as in my invention.

I claim:

1. The method of manufacturing spoons and similar articles of copper zinc alloy, comprising casting slabs of the alloy, machining said slabs, annealing them, heating them to higher temperature, rolling them to a given thickness from that temperature, rolling down the hot-rolled sheet in the cold. obtaining blanks from the cold-rolled sheet, and finishing said blanks by hot-forging.

2. The method of manufacturing spoons and similar articles of copper-zinc alloy, comprising casting slabs of the alloy, machining said slabs, annealingthem, heating them to higher-temperature, rolling them to a giventhickness from that temperature, reheating them during the hot-rolling, rolling down the hot-rolled sheet in the-cold, obtaining blanks from the cold-rolled sheet, and V finishing said blanks by hot-forging.

3. The method ofmanufacturing spoons and similar-articles oI" copper-zinc alloy, comprising casting slabs of the-alloy, machining said slabs, annealing them for 18 hours at -about 700 (legs. centigrade, rolling themto a given thickness from 7 'to 825 degs. centigrade, rolling down the hot-rolled sheet in the cold, obtaining blanks from the cold-rolled sheet, and finishing said blanks by hot-forging.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification. V KURT SPRINGORUM. 

